HTC Eris OTA Update

According to Verizon and BGR, random HTC ERIS users should have received an update right around midnight last night (or is that this morning?).

The new ROM version is 1.16.605.1 and the radio version is 2.32.40.11.09. Like all OTA updates it will be distributed to some first and then the majority.

So be patient and wait your turn.

For those of you fortunate to have gotten the update, enjoy the following perks:

-While on a call and the device is in screensaver mode, pressing the End key now takes the device out of screensaver mode, and a second press will end the call.
-On-call mute and speakerphone icon functionality is enhanced.
-Upgraded functionality after activation eliminates the delay users were experiencing in receiving their first call.
-Device now switches effectively from 1x mode to 3G.
-Device no longer requires users to reselect a default email after power-cycling.
-SMS and MMS messaging delivery is improved.
-Eighty-character MMS/SMS message subject lines are now allowed.
-Improved picture messaging functionality allows messages from LG phones to be opened.

My battery life is fine with the Eris. Bluetooth works great while driving. I usually have WiFi on for 4-6 hours a day and have Pandora on while driving. My battery has only completely run out once before I was able to charge it and that was when I first got the phone and was checking everything out. I use absolutely no Task killers either. I turn off WiFi and Blue tooth when not using them and I always have satellite based GPS turned off as I rely on the cell signal to give my estimated position for apps that require it.

Luke

Having the phone completely run out a couple times early on definitely helps. I’ve only had the phone for a short while but the battery is about what I’d expect for a phone such as this. I know it’s an issue for some but if you manage your phone correctly it shouldn’t be a problem.

Danny

@Luke

Exactly, I cycled the battery fully 3 times when I first got it and it has been great. Before the Eris I had an Omnia and the battery life on that phone was slightly less than the Eris. It all depends on how you use the phone, if you are constantly surfing the web, browsing the market and /or have WiFi on the battery is going to die quickly.

I make sure to turn things off when not using them, I also can’t stress enough to make sure the Sat GPS is turned off. It will not affect anything as long as the “Use wireless networks” option is checked under the location settings.

http://Huh??? Charles

Just got my OTA update…

Some things I noticed/confirmed.

Numerics to show size of Text before it is sent. (but not while typing)

Call Screensaver End issue fixed.

That’s all I’ve got so far…

-Stamford, CT

Gert.B.Frobe

@Danny
I leave my GPS on for usage with Locale and usually have around 30% left at 11pm when I plug it into the charger after a 6:30am unplug.
Of course, I’m a 15% usage user so I’m not taxing my batt too much.

BTW, I’m that kid above … I want my update!

Steve

Just got my OTA update..
Now the phone freezes when it is asleep and I get email and a SMS

http://www.myfivefootview.com Charles

@Charles (Yes, I am correcting myself)

When I said “Numerics to show size of Text before it is sent. (but not while typing)” I was wrong. It shows it while typing in portrait mode, not landscape.

So restated…

Lee Skunes

Will the 2.0 update in january help to solve the battery issue? I am about to return this phone because of it. I turn off everything for notifications and always on and it still doesnt even last me til 6 pm at night. I rarely use mobile browser and text not an obscene amount during the day.

Btdrnks

Why is everyone so concerned with battery life of any phone? Buy a cheap second charger, keep it at work. But a cheap car charger, keep it in the car. Problem solved. Got both for 4 bucks on amazon.

Brad

Haven’t gotten mine yet, just checked. I’ll check again tomorrow. I’m willing to bet that a lot more than just the things mentioned in that PDF have been fixed. Being a consumer-oriented update document from Verizon, they are obviously going to leave out lots of technical details that interest us, but not the general populace. There are several bug fixes mentioned in that leaked OTA update bulletin a while back, and I’m going to expect to see most or all of them in place after this update.

http://dave.com Dave

Agree with guy who says get a charger at work and in the car. These kinds of devices need power. It’s not magic.

I have noticed that some of the photo and message widgets on my Eris will put my awake time in the high 70’s. Removed them, now im averaging around 20-30% awake time.

AJ

still nothing yet.. o_O didnt know this was gona be torture knowing that theres a OTA available and still havent been pushed to my phone.. pooper!

Elliot

Have Not got my OTA update yet, is 10pm 12/11. Hopefully I’ll get it soon. Any idea when Android 2.0 is coming to the Eris? Is it scheduled for January?

CaptBebops

Got the update last night.

Brad

Sweet, just got my update at midnight on the 13th. The update listed itself as just 6.5MB, but it took a fair amount of time to install it. It did several reboots with the installer screen appearing, and when it did the final reboot back into the system afterward, it sat at the HTC logo screen for several minutes. I was beginning to think the phone had frozen up, but then it finally loaded the launcher. My initial feeling is that my phone seems faster than ever, but that could be just because it’s been a couple weeks since I rebooted it. I went through and opened several of my common apps and games and stuff, and everything seems very snappy and responsive, and the HTC launcher seems very fluid, much more so than ever. Time will tell if that performance boost is just temporary from the reboot, or permanent. Time will also tell if there’s any improvement in battery life, or any new bugs introduced.

Brian Mc

The display of character count in the text messaging is great! I could ask that after 160 characters the message be split into two separate texts in order to be sent to non verizon customers. I hope the texting problems are fixed two cause i had many complaints of duplicate messages being sent.

jk

No update for me yet.

CaptBebops

This apparently is NOT a firmware update. My phone still says 1.5 for firmware. The software says 1.16. Arrgh!!!

Brad

@CaptBebops – Um, yeah, we knew that already. Technically it is a firmware update (new build number/software version), but it’s still Android 1.5. This was just a bug fix/enhancement package.

Quick update, something got stuck in a loop or something after the update, and caused my phone to be awake 100% of the time. I even rebooted it again, same problem. I removed a third-party widget that I suspected might be the culprit, and finally the phone went to sleep. Adding the widget back afterwards doesn’t seem to reintroduce the issue. Also, the phone continues to feel much snappier than before (yay!) and I dare say that I believe battery life seems to be a bit better. Tomorrow will be a more true test, since I’ll have work emails pushing out to it all day.

ritchie

Well, i just got the update and guess what. My phone stopped working.

The process android.process.acore has stopped unexpectedly. This is fourth time my phone has just stopped working. The music player won’t work, the phone don’t work, i can’t get into settings because it don’t work. The only thing i can do is log onto the internet with it. Hell, the phone doesn’t even catch a signal right now to use the phone even if it was working.

This sucks.

Pam

I just received the Eris on Friday. As of today it shows software verion sas 1.12.605.1 – should I have gotten an update?
Thanks,
Pam

Sheryl

I also got google directions with my update

Willie

The My Location feature on my Eris keeps showing that I am somewhere in India (the same for my wif’s phone). Any ideas to help fix this?

Brad

Okay another update on my update experience. There’s good news and bad news. The good news is that the phone continues to be noticeably faster than before, and yes, BATTERY LIFE HAS IMPROVED! My phone has been off the charger for more than 13 hours, and normally I’m down to around 25-30% by now, but it shows I still have 50% of my battery life left. That’s after a day full of push email from work, a half-hour long call, and some web browsing. Additionally, the phone seems to be maintaining better tower signal, and the problem I had with some apps getting corrupted during a phone reboot appears to have vanished.

Now, on to the bad news. The blasted update trashed my SD card!!! I had some important photos on there that I hadn’t bothered to back up yet, and they are all gone!!! I had no reason to believe SD card data would be affected by the update. Not only that, but after trying to mount it to Windows via USB cable, it actually claimed my SD card was damaged and unreadable, and it couldn’t format it. I had to pull it out and connect it to a MicroSD card reader and format it that way before the phone would read it again. Needless to say I am NOT HAPPY. If you have not yet received or attempted the update, make sure you completely back up everything from your SD card, or you might be very sorry.

Chris

I’ve noticed my eris become more buggy since the update. Its harder to unlock and everything has slowed down… and its glitchy.

Mike

I have noticed a big difference in battery life and speed of browsing. I haven’t notice any bad effects on the phone. I think all and all it was a really good update.

Chris

After the update I cannot swipe the lockscreen to unlock the phone – have to press the MENU button. Verizon cannot explain.

Bill Morris

I too have been having problems with my battery life. I found out the other day when I left my phone in the car that it is the poor signal I’m getting in my building that’s running my battery down. My phone had a full charge in the morning and had about 60% battery life when I checked my phone 8 hours later. Normally I have to charge my phone every 4-6 hours while at work. I’m using Google Voice to forward my calls to my work phone now. This has been a great solution. Thanks Google!

Michelle

I just got my Eris today. I can’t figure out how to put something on the home screen for my text messaging. Is there an app or a widget for this?

crigar

anyone having problems with incoming texts from verizon customers bigger than 160 characters…..it says this phone the eris does not have enhanced text messaging

http://www.admorvapor.com Joshua

Hey Michelle,

If you have verizon, it is on the home screen titled “Messages”

Tory

Ok I LOVED my Eris until the latest update. My phone now runs very slow and some of my apps force close, where before the update I never had any of those problems. I also have battery life problems after the update. I am very unhappy with it and I wish I could go back to the way it was before the update.

Rick

Hey Tory,I’m with you loved my Eris BEFORE 2.1 update! Now signal is never more than 1 or 2 bars.usually can’t even place calls anymore. And drop calls all the time.Verizon reset phone and didn’t help,*228 did nothing either.How frustrating!!!